I remember my very first SDCC: I was overwhelmed, nervous, and just loved all the nerdery of it all. I walked the floors, went to panels, and waited for hours and hours in line to get a chance to see some of the creators who inspired me so much. This year I was invited as a guest to SDCC and it was such an amazing experience!

SIDEKICK SQUAD, BOOK ONE — Jess Tran is resigned to a life without superpowers and is merely looking to beef up her college applications when she stumbles upon the perfect (paid!) internship—only it turns out to be for the town’s most heinous supervillain. On the upside, she gets to work with her longtime secret crush, Abby, whom Jess thinks may have a secret of her own…

Holoprojectors in the Sidekick Squad universe can do a lot of things, including display full color books and other interactive content. Bells Broussard is an active member of the Andover Heights High School yearbook. His primary job is doing layout and occasionally some art, but sometimes (and you 21st century yearbook folks would definitely know this) he has to juggle a few different hats and write some articles. So of course Bells would write about his two best friends…

Not Your Sidekick takes flight in the year 2123, a hundred years after a major solar flare catalyzes for not just superpowers but also a series of major disasters which drastically changed the world. Yesterday The Gay YA hosted NYS on their monthly book club discussion, and the question was asked about how sexuality is seen in the NYS world, how it’s not entirely accepted, but not too much phobia either.

Putting this aesthetic together was so much fun! It’s always great working with the talented Tiffany Chien. We traveled to the inspiring Red Rocks Canyon National Conservation Area to a few of my favorite locations to really bring Jess and her dreams to life…

My parents both come from large families, and as long as I remember at least once a month we would all get together for a huge party that would last all day. Sometimes it was for a holiday, or someone’s birthday, but more often than not it was just a random Saturday where we’d just gather and celebrate being alive.